Understand the eTIMS system, what an OSCU integrator does, and how Ushuru fits into your invoicing workflow.

What is eTIMS

eTIMS is Kenya Revenue Authority's electronic Tax Information Management System. Under the Finance Act 2023, all VAT-registered businesses in Kenya must submit invoices electronically to Kenya Revenue Authority. This requirement became mandatory on January 1, 2024.

Every sale you make must be reported to Kenya Revenue Authority in real time. Kenya Revenue Authority returns a cryptographic signature that must appear on the customer receipt. Without this signature, the receipt is not legally valid.

What is an OSCU

An OSCU (Online Sales Control Unit) is a software integration that sits between your billing system and Kenya Revenue Authority eTIMS. Ushuru is a multi-tenant Kenya Revenue Authority OSCU integrator platform.

Instead of integrating directly with Kenya Revenue Authority's complex VSCU/OSCU protocol, your system calls the Ushuru API with an organisation API key. Ushuru handles per-organisation device credentials, OAuth authentication, data formatting, and communication with Kenya Revenue Authority on your behalf.

Your system → Ushuru API → Kenya Revenue Authority eTIMS → Ushuru API → Your system

The Invoice Flow

Every sale follows these steps:

1. Initialize your OSCU device (POST /api/v1/initialize)
2. Register items with Kenya Revenue Authority (if not already registered)
3. Submit the sale (POST /api/v1/sales)
4. Print internalData and receiptSignature on the customer receipt

What Goes on Every Receipt

Three fields returned by Kenya Revenue Authority eTIMS are required on every printed receipt. Without them, the receipt is not legally valid under the Finance Act 2023.

Tax Types in Kenya

Kenya Revenue Authority eTIMS uses tax-inclusive pricing. The price you enter already includes VAT. Ushuru calculates the tax breakdown automatically.